Insurers refuse to offer cash to settle theft claims

INSURERS are increasingly refusing to pay cash to claimants because they can cut costs by replacing goods through backstairs deals with store groups.

Consumers are also losing out because firms are declining claims for valuables not specified on their home-contents, personal-possessions or travel policies.

Fine art, high-tech equipment and precious jewellery are no longer the preserve of the super wealthy. Figures from the Post Office show that seven in ten Britons now take at least one expensive gadget, such as a digital camcorder, on holiday.

Research from Loss Management Group, a specialist jewellery-claims firm, however, reveals that customers claiming for the loss or theft of such valuables are often forced to accept replacement goods — which may not be the same as the items lost — from store groups with which their insurers have undeclared links.